The Miami Dolphins have been one of the league’s best when playing at home in recent years, as they’ve put together a 13-4 record at home (fifth in the NFL) since Mike McDaniel arrived in South Florida, and since 2020, they’re 24-10 (sixth).
Between the fans and the weather, Hard Rock Stadium continues to be a nightmare for opponents, and the players, current and past, know it. Hall of Fame fullback Larry Csonka, in a recent interview with Mike Oliva of the “DolphinsTalk.com Podcast,” spoke about the importance of getting home games in the postseason.
“We have to get home-field advantage,” Csonka said. “We can’t go up and play Buffalo at Buffalo. We can’t play Kansas City in Kansas City. We have to get them to Miami. When you bring people down to Miami, there’s still magic in that stadium in Miami, let me tell you. Whether it was the Orange Bowl or the new stadium, it doesn’t matter. There’s a magic that you have that gives you and advantage. Not an advantage point-wise, it gives you an advantage incentive-wise because there are no better fans than what we have in Miami. I swear.
“I played all around the league for years. I still go there. I still listen. The Dolphin fans, I’m not going to say that they’re the only ones, but they are certainly a small group of maybe two to four in the entire league where you have a real advantage by playing on your home field. And, the Dolphins have that.”
Miami was in the driver’s seat late in the season and could’ve won the division and hosted playoff games if it hadn’t been for losses to the Tennessee Titans, Baltimore Ravens and Buffalo Bills down the stretch. If they had won just one of those contests, Hard Rock Stadium would’ve had the opportunity to host at least one game instead of the team playing in their coldest game in franchise history. Maybe things might’ve ended differently.